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Change to Stop & Shop Expansion Plans Will Delay Public Hearing

A public hearing on a major expansion plan for the Stop & Shop store on the Vineyard Haven waterfront has been postponed, the Martha’s Vineyard Commission said this week.

The hearing, the first formal public review of the expansion plan, was set for June 6.

MVC development of regional impact (DRI) coordinator Paul Foley said this week that he was notified by the attorney for Stop & Shop that changes were being made to the plans, but that the applicant would not be ready in time for June 6.

Mr. Foley said the commission staff had not seen the changes yet.

The project, which would double the size of the existing grocery store on Water street, is under review by the commission as a DRI.

The property sits at the gateway to town across from the Steamship Authority terminal, just off the busy Five Corners intersection.

The plan calls for building a two-story building with a parking garage on the first level and the main store on the second level.

A number of issues already have cropped up with the plan, chief among them traffic congestion and historic preservation of an old house that is owned by the grocery store chain and sits on Cromwell Lane. The house was slated for demolition but a historical analysis showed that it was one of a handful of Tisbury buildings predating an 1883 fire that destroyed much of Main street. The Massachusetts Historical Commission has determined the home was eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The commission is in contact with state archeology officials about the site surrounding the house, which is possibly rare and significant, Mr. Foley said.

The commission also had asked for more information on a traffic study conducted by the applicant.

Comments (4)

That beautiful and historic house should DEFINITELY not be demolished. Once gone, these gems cannot be reproduced. It's important to preserve history rather than make more room for bio enhanced mega food stores that may one day be toxic relics of the past. More farms more farmers more farm outlets more fresh food less cancers.

Agreed. There are no late eighteenth-century and early nineteenth-century homes left near the harbor in that area. Just the other day, I was admiring the federal symmetry of the chimneys and wondering why such a gorgeous house was being left fallow. Stop-n-Shop can demonstrate community leadership by restoring the home and donating it the town as a visitor center.

Why on earth would would a large grocery store be allowed to expand in the already parking-deficient and traffic problem area of five corners? That is arguably the worst traffic problem on the island. Would it not make more sense to build a large store that is fully accessible from all towns in the center of the island? Parking, public transit and delivery trucks could be factored into the planning. I don't understand how an enclosed garage in the flood zone is going to solve anything.